The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1887-09-11

The ovoispsaia Of America. biography.


Faphies now In course OF publication By the
Appistons-O vo,opndfa Of American Biography.
edited By JAnrs GRANT WILSON and JOHN
fIsKs, In six volumes. Vols. l. and Ills oven
moro comprehensive than might at f1rst sight
be inferred from the title Appearing In the
English language, It primarily contemplates,
= OF course. body Of readers made up OF citizens
or dsniseps Of the United States. but 1t ain,s.
IN addition. to supply information OF the kind
specially desired In every civilized section OF
the American hemisphere. Nor does this den-
Milton indicate the extrcme limits OF Its scope
For In those volumes ve ind notices not only Of
che men who, during personal residence upon
these shores. have taken part OF some i'm
portanes In the discovery. settlement. and sub
seousnt development OF this continent. but
also OF many who. without ever visiting this
hemisphere were BY their political careers In
t1mately associated with American affairs.
Upon the latter reasonable ground tho
editors have admitted tho names OF Chat
ham and Burke. neither Of whom, as
NO scarcely need point out, ever crossed
ehs Atlantic. In . word. what this book
endssyors to accomplish 10 to furnish bio
graphical notices Of all the names which are
likely 10 b encountered In any oapacious his
tory Of the Unitsd States or Of any other polit-
col division Of the New World As . matter Of
esst, Il ofIsrs much moro than that for We have
eoms on many accounts OF local or ephemeral
WORTHLESS who have not the faintest chance OF
rsoeiving the most oursory attention from the
historian. But In every undertaking Of this
hind some allowance must be made for COM
unercial considerations. Agents ind 1t much
easier to sell . book in given town or county
n one Of It's citizens. dead or living. is deemed
70 deserve eommemoration.
OF sourse there are Q few omissions; We do
not mean In tho eyes Of petty local or family
oslf-sstesm-no work OF this kind could eDcape
snlmadversion on that scoro-but veritable
sysrsishts which tho editors themselves have
no doubt recognized and will DO certain to COR
rect In . second edition. Here. for example.
although upward Of three columns arc de-
voted to Barrios, the late dictator Of Guate-
mala, there IL absolutely not word about Con.
Gusman Blanco, who Is now. as he has been
before, President OF Venezuela, and who. what
sver may DO said Of the arbitrarinoss Of his
methods Of government. has rehabilitated tho
credit Of his country In European markets. and
given marked impulse to Its commercial 40
tivity. As q South American OF indisputable
smlnenoe he certainly deserves . line In bio
graphical cycloppdia published In the city Of
New York. which is indebted to him for the
statue Of Bolivar In its Central Park.
We have also In rare instances remarked In
Of fact Thus Of Gen. Cluserst We read: =" He
was arrested on suspicion Of treaehery on May
!. 1871. but escaped to England" Tho reader
whose Information was derived wholly from
this source would infer that while still bear
ing the odium Of an untrisd charge, Cluseret
sscapsd from his fellow Communist. Tho
tacts. instead Of justifying such an imputations
are creditable to Clussret. He was arrested on
April 90. and. In violation OF . fundamental
Law Of the Commune. was denied hearing for
ten days On May 0 he was tried and acquitted
BY an almost unanimous vote. After the fall
Of tho Commune he remained secretly in Paris
until the following November. having found
refuge In the house OF priest who was cog
ntsant Of Clussret's attempt to secure the lib
sration of Archbishop Darboy and Of his res
QUO OF that prolatss sister, By this priest he
was aided to escape. not to England, but to
belgium.
The instances, however, In which the reader
may observe some mistaken or defective state
msnts Of fact are rare. and should not for .
moment DO allowed to cloud appreciation Of
the painstaking and conscientious accuracy
which pervades these volumes. Especially
praiseworthy Is tho effort Of the editors. which
has almost always boon successful. to efface
every tings Of partisan prsdilection or antip-
athy from the reviews Of tho careers and
oudEeCSoEo VI ulbtAu8uinuoa puDho i4oAs AhAo
merit, which. Of course. Is capital In the case
OF oyclopndis intended for national cir
oulaton. viii be particularly noted in tho
lives Of Buchanan. Grant, Greeley. Garfield,
Arthur. and Oonkling. and. above all. In tho &C.
count Of Jefferson Davis. Indeed. impartiality
n carried to 20 Moe point that almost exactly
the same number OF lines are devoted to Glove
land and to Blaine. We are not sure that cir
eumspsotion 10 not occasionally carried to tho
pitch Of suppressing unpleasant facts for
which there u generally sckno to be Q
prepondsranee OF evidence. But II that DO .
fault In book Of Tia kind. 1t evidently leans
TO the side Of virtue.
II IN not to be expected that where tho
scheme Of . work comprises such q multiple
CITY Of topics all tho subjects even Of oonsidera-
HE importance can be intrustod to mon OF
equal historical competence and literary abil-
ity. Nevertheless tho aim OF the editors to
employ writer's whose previous studies had
>ndo->d thar, Nth nd amt hla nm nj an fiopa